Boulder County prosecutors have dismissed attempted-murder and assault charges against a Nederland woman accused of hitting her boyfriend in the head with a flashlight last November, saying they did not think they could get a conviction in the case.

Joy Carol Sorenson, 57, was charged with first-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault and felony menacing, and was scheduled for an arraignment in the case Tuesday.

But in a motion dated April 2 and approved by a judge Tuesday, the Boulder County District Attorney's Office said it did not believe there was a reasonable likelihood of a conviction in the criminal case, the ethical standard the office must abide by.

"The people have conducted extensive follow-up investigation, which has revealed information which would significantly impair the people's likelihood of succession on the merits of this case," the motion read. "It is not the people's position that the allegations of the victim in this case are untrue, or that the defendant acted in self-defense, but simply that the people cannot ethically proceed with this case, at this time, in light of the requisite burden of proof in a criminal case."

According to an arrest affidavit, Nederland police responded to a house at 170 E. Second St. on Nov. 3 after Sorenson called to tell them she hit a man in the head several times with a 5-cell aluminum Maglite flashlight.

When an officer arrived on scene, he found the victim -- identified as Tyrone Lee, 53 -- lying in a large pool of blood coming from the back of his head. Lee was conscious, but unable to move due to the pain in his neck and head, according to a police report.

Sorenson told the officer that she hit Lee with the flashlight five or six times after she claimed he tried to sexually assault her. But Lee -- who suffered nine deep lacerations to his skull and two fractures to his vertebrae -- said he had gone over to break up with her when she ambushed him from behind with the flashlight.

While the case made it through a preliminary hearing in January, District Attorney Stan Garnett said all cases are constantly being reviewed to make sure there is enough evidence to move forward.

"We are constantly evaluating the evidence because we have an ethical obligation not to proceed with a case at trial unless there is a reasonable likelihood of conviction by a jury beyond a reasonable doubt," Garnett said. "That's what happened here. This was a significant case, a significant charge with first-degree attempted murder, and our investigators working the case concluded, based on the information they got, was that this case could not be proven at trial.

"We felt that anything short of dismissal was not appropriate in this case."

Garnett said prosecutors talked to both the victim and the Nederland Police Department before making the decision.

"Ultimately it's the jury that gets to decide guilty or innocent," Garnett said. "But we have an obligation not to subject a person to a criminal trial unless the evidence meets the standard the Supreme Court requires."

Sorenson has since been released from the Boulder County Jail. She could not be reached for comment Tuesday.

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